This story first appeared in Новое время (Novoye vremya, "New Time"), December 25, 1879, under the title Рождественский вечер у ипохондрика (Rozhdestvenskiy vecher u ipokhondrika, "Christmas Party at a Hypochondriac").

Later published under a much revised form and the title Чертогон (Chertogon) in Leskov's collection Русская рознь. Очерки и рассказы (1880 и 1881) (Russkaya rozn'. Ocherki i rasskazy (1880 i 1881), "Russian strife. Sketches and Stories (1880 and 1881)".